What's your reason?

I believe there is always a reason behind an action. Even a no reason is a reason itself.

There is always a reason (and sometimes several reasons) why I choose to bake something...be it cakes, cookies or just a simple loaf of bread. Sometimes my reasons could be quite frivolousness (^^'). I could have bought a new set of muffin cups or some new ingredients that I die die must try. Most of the time it was purely due to inspirations from images I saw on cookbooks or food blogs. Occasionally, I would conduct some kitchen experiments mainly to try to clear whatever ingredients that was nearing shelf life.

So, what's the reason(s) behind these soft and fluffy cinnamon rolls?

There are many!

1) Ever since I started baking bread, I 'promised' my younger child I will make him some cinnamon rolls...which is the name behind that super cute Sanrio character Cinnamoroll! He was and still is a big fan of Cinnamoroll. I told him, Cinnamoroll's tail is just like a cinnamon roll! Well, that was like 3 years ago, and I am glad that kept my promise. Yeah! Parenting Rule #1, Keep your promises! I am doing quite well in this aspect as I am smart enough to make only simple promises. ;')

2) I have wanted to try making bread using this 65C tang zhong (water-roux) method ever since I saw it at MH's blog...2 years ago.  (MH if you are reading this, I just want to tell you I finally bought a digital scale, there is no more excuse for not being able to measure 84g of tang zhong!).

3)A few weeks ago, a reader by the name of Cupcake asked me which brand of cinnamon powder do I use. I am sorry I did not reply her question. I wasn't able to. Other than the Chinese five spice powder, I have not bought any cinnamon powder. I have not baked anything with cinnamon powder, even if a recipe calls for it, I will omit it. The reason is, I am really not sure whether my family will like it. However, Cupcake's comment was so 'powerful' that I found myself dropping a bottle of McCormick's cinnamon powder into my shopping basket when I went grocery shopping the other day. So, cinnamon rolls, here I come!

4) This last reason is not the everyday kind of reason. Actually, this is the highlight of this blog post!

On our flight back from Beijing last December, I watched this Japanese movie, Seagull Diner or Kamome Shokudo かもめ食堂，海鸥食堂 on board. I didn't get to finish watching the last half an hour of the movie as the entertainment system was switched off to prepare for landing. This movie left such a good impression that I have to watched it when I came back. I did a search and was so happy to able to watch it online! Some sites provide Chinese sub, some are in English. I recommended it to my cyber-friend VB, thinking that she would probably like this kind of movie...especially she is currently learning Japanese. Now, I can't write a movie review at all. I can only say it is a very beautiful movie. It will leave you with a very good feeling after watching it. The story is extremely simple...about a Japanese woman, Sachie, who opens a diner in Finland, and her encounters with two other Japanese women and her Finnish customers. Do hop over to the above link to read about the story. I really enjoyed the movie and so did VB. Since the setting is a diner, you cannot run away from Food! There are 3 particular scenes I love...a man who came to the diner to teach Sachie how to make a good cup of coffee; Sachie and her friends making those big, fat, pure white onigiri; and Sachie making Cinnamon Rolls and the Finnish ladies having them for tea. I am so inspired that I told myself I must really make it a point to try it. I am really glad that I finally did it!

Hop over here to watch the preview of this movie to decide whether you will like it!

I did not make the classic type of cinnamon rolls where the dough is made with plain flour...which will give a more chewy texture.

I prefer something softer, so I followed this cinnamon roll recipe from this book, 65度C汤种面包 (65degC Tang Zhong Bread).

Cooking the tang zhong was not as difficult as I thought. Even for someone who is really bad with anything that has got to do with a stove, I did not burn the water-roux! However, the dough was really difficult to work with. It was rather wet due to the high water content, and even after 40mins of kneading by hand, the dough was still a little sticky. I gave up, dust it with some flour, smooth it into a dough and leave it to proof. The dough was easier to work with after the first proof. I melted some butter, spread it onto the dough (take note, the dough should not be rolled till too thin, ideal thickness is at least 1/2", otherwise you will end up with a hard, chewy roll!) before sprinkling the cinnamon and sugar mixture over. Rolling it up was pretty easy too...the only challenge I faced was cutting the rolls into equal sizes! It is not a simple task, as the cinnamon filling somewhat prevented the dough from sticking together after rolling. The centre tend to squeeze its way out when I try to slice the roll ;'(

Anyway, to cut the story short, I was rewarded with a tray of sweet smelling cinnamon rolls 4 hrs later. How I wish you could 'smell' these rolls off your screen! I skipped the icing/glaze as the roll already tasted so good on its own. It was an instant hit among my two boys. We have it for tea, breakfast and tea again the next day! The recipe is a keeper, and I am sure I will be making this again and again and again.

So, what's your reason for baking something?




Cinnamon Rolls
(makes 9)

tang zhong (water-roux)

25g bread flour
125ml water

bread dough:

210g bread flour
56g cake flour
20g milk powder
42g caster sugar
1/2 tsp salt
6g instant yeast

30g egg, lightly beaten (about half an egg, reserve the leftover for egg wash)
85g water
84g tang zhong (water-roux)*

22g unsalted butter

filling:

1 teaspoon cinnamon powder (this amount is just right for my kids, use more if desired)
30g sugar (I used raw sugar)
25g unsalted butter, melted


Method:

to make tang zhong (yields about 90g tang zhong):

Place 25g bread flour in a saucepan. Add 125ml water, mix till smooth, making sure there are no lumps of flour. Cook over medium to low heat, stirring constantly with a hand whisk to prevent it from burning. Within 1 to 2 mins, the mixture will start to thicken, stop when you see traces in the mixture for every stir you make with the hand whisk. (Take a look at the video clip here. ) The 65degC tang zhong is ready. Immediately transfer the hot tang zhong into a bowl and cover it with a cling wrap, making sure the cling wrap sticks onto the surface of the mixture. This is to prevent a film from forming on the surface. Leave to cool completely before using it.

to make dough:

Mix all the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Make a well in the centre and add in the egg, water and tang zhong. Mix to form a rough dough. Transfer dough to a lightly floured work surface. Knead the dough till smooth. This should take about 10mins. The dough is quite wet and sticky, it helps to have a dough scraper on hand to scape up the dough as your knead.

Knead in the butter. Continue to knead the dough until it no longer sticks to your hand, becomes smooth and elastic. This should take about another 20 to 30 mins. Do the window pane test: pinch a piece of the dough, pull and stretch it. It should be elastic, and can be pulled away into a thin membrane without tearing/breaking apart easily.

Place dough in a lightly greased (use vegetable oil or butter) mixing bowl, cover with cling wrap and let proof in room temperature (around 28 to 30 degC) for about one hour, or until double in bulk.

Mix cinnamon powder and sugar together. Reserve about 1 teaspoon of the mixture.

Remove the dough from the bowl and give a few light kneading to press out the gas in the dough. Roll the dough into a rectangle, about 30cm by 25cm, 1/2 inch thick. Brush surface with melted butter. Sprinkle the cinnamon/sugar mixture over the dough surface. Roll over the surface with a rolling pin, this is to make sure the fillings will stick onto the dough.

From the longer end (30cm), roll up the dough to form a long log (ie 30cm in lengh). Pinch the edges to seal. Place the log seam side down, trim off the two ends. With a sharp knife, cut the roll into 9 equal pieces, about 3cm each. (To get even rolls, use a dental floss to slice the log. Position a long string of dental floss under the log, hold the two free ends, criss-cross over the top of the log, pull the two ends to cut the roll. Tip from cookbook, 天然麵包香, Natural Bread Made Easy.)

Arrange the rolls cut-side up in a greased (or lined with parchment paper) 20cm square pan or any suitable baking tray. Leave some space in between the rolls to allow them to expand. Cover with damp cloth or cling wrap and leave doughs to proof for the second time for about 45mins, or until double in size.

Brush top with egg wash (mix leftover egg with 1 tbs water) and sprinkle the reserved cinnamon sugar mixture over the top. Bake in pre-heated oven at 180 deg C for 15-20 mins or until golden brown. Remove from oven and once cool store immediately in an airtight container.

Recipe adapted from: 65度C汤种面包, 陈郁芬